Save Me
by letthestarsfall
Summary: Everyone needs someone to save them, some people just take longer to realise. AU RuthxJay Starting from Jay's arrival!
1. First Impressions

_Disclaimer - I don't own Casualty or Ruth and Jay would already be living happily ever after!_

**Save Me**

**Chapter 1 – First Impressions **

Another unfamiliar ceiling, another unfamiliar set of bed sheets, another unfamiliar hand on his shoulder, another unfamiliar voice waking him from his alcohol induced sleep.

"Morning sleepy head."

A rather stunning blonde girl was staring deep into Jay's eyes, he forced his most charming smile across his lips.

"Morning beautiful."

He was a charmer and he knew it. A different lady every night living by his own golden rules, no strings, show them a good time and always stay for breakfast.

"I thought you said something about work?" the girl chuckled

Jay glanced at the clock and cursed. He was due to start his new job at Holby emergency department ten minutes ago. He was already late so what harm was a few more hours going to be?

"Nah, maybe later, how about some breakfast first…?" He suggested cheekily

Ruth sighed as she picked up the next lot of patient notes it was another busy shift in the emergency department, though she wasn't one to complain, she actually quite enjoyed working a busy shift as she loved the challenge of keeping onto top of her patients. After losing her orthopaedic rotation to Toby following her suicide attempt she had resigned herself to the fact that she would be stuck in the emergency department for the foreseeable future so she was determined to make the best of it, even if she longed to be up in surgery, secretly though she was beginning to build up a liking for the hustle and bustle of the emergency department and surprisingly its staff.

Today Ruth could see one glaringly obvious reason for the chaos. There seemed to be a total lack of nurses rather than the usual excessive amount of patients causing the trouble. As she wandered towards her next patient she spotted Tess approaching her.

"Where are all your nurses today?" She asked the senior nurse irritably.

Ok she had been getting on better with the staff recently but that did not stop her speaking her mind at times and maintaining her cold and rather harsh reputation.

"I'd like to know exactly the same thing believe me!" Tess responded with a sigh "The new nurse hasn't even turned up! I don't know what Charlie was thinking when he said that he liked him!"

"Well he sounds like he's going to be a great addition to the team!" Ruth said sarcastically

"I'm not saying anything!" Tess raised her hands in defeat, Ruth got the impression that she fully agreed that the new nurse's inability to turn up to his first shift definitely made him seem like he would be likely to cause trouble. "Though if you could stitch up Mrs Peters in cubicle two when you have finished…"

"I'm not a nurse!" Ruth snapped immediately

"I know Ruth but we are short staffed…" Tess pointed out

"Yes ok. Mrs Peters cubicle two, done." Ruth rolled her eyes slightly before heading towards cubicle six and her other patient.

Today was hectic enough without some troublesome new nurse not even bothering to show up. She pulled back the curtain and offered the teenager inside a forced smile. Who was she to complain? It meant more work and a bigger challenge after all.

"When you said you'd give me a lift this isn't exactly what I was thinking of!" Jay yelled over the roar of the motorbike's engine.

"Scared?" She replied

"Not a bit!" Jay yelled back as they pulled off the main road onto the back street towards Holby City Hospital.

They pulled up outside the emergency department on one of the ambulance bays and Jay hopped off the bike pulling off the borrowed helmet.

"Well thanks for a great night!" He winked at the girl and she smiled as she took off her own helmet.

He lent down and gave her one long kiss on the lips before handing her the helmet and wandering into the emergency department without a second glance at the girl he had left behind.

"There you are!"

The voice that greeted Jay was beyond angry. He couldn't help but feel slightly nervous as he approached the strict looking nurse from his interview a few days before.

"Alright…Rachel…?" he asked trying to wrack his brains for her name.

"It's Tess or Sister Bateman to you." She snapped back immediately "Your six hours late."

"Oh am I?" Jay feigned shock "I thought I started at one o'clock?"

"You know damn well…" Tess began "Be here. At seven on the dot tomorrow or you are fired." She added with a sigh "And don't think I won't hesitate to get you kicked out the department if you are a minute late!"

She turned on her head and left Jay stood feeling a little shocked in the middle of reception.

He looked about him.

"You need to stay on the right side of her mate."

The friendly voice of the receptionist echoed through the reception area.

"I guess so." Jay replied putting his hands in his pockets and wandering over to the reception desk. "Bet she's a pussy cat really…" he laughed

"No chance, Tess is like a tiger…" the receptionist informed him "I'm Noel." He offered Jay his hand

"Jay. New nurse, if I make it here on time tomorrow." Jay informed him

"Nice to meet you Jay."

"Where are the patients notes I asked you for?"

The voice was sharp, cold and impatient.

"Sorry Ruth." Noel hurried back over to the other side of the desk and picked up a pile of papers and brought them over to her. She grabbed them from him and looked him in the eyes.

"Doctor Winters." She replied

"Doctor Winters." Noel replied rolling his eyes slightly "This is Jay, new nurse…"

"Oh so you're the nurse that can't even be bothered to turn up on time on his first day?" Ruth replied looking Jay up and down

"I am indeed." Jay grinned "Nice to meet you…" he began as Ruth turned on her heel and walked off "Charming…" he said watching her leave "All the doctors that frosty?"

"Nah." Noel shook his head and Jay breathed a small sigh of relief "Frosty is Doctor Winters speciality."

"Winters by name winters by nature huh?" Jay laughed "Another one I should watch out for then?"

"Definitely." Noel nodded

Not the best first day. Jay decided as he bid farewell to Noel but for some reason he was quiet exited to start working in the emergency department for real, he just had to make sure he was on time and that was easier said than done when Jay was concerned.


	2. Differences of Opinion

**Save Me**

**Chapter 2 – Differences of Opinion**

It was a very bleary eyed Jay fell through the doors into Holby City Hospital's emergency department at exactly 7am the following day. As he lay awake in bed the night before he couldn't help but ponder two things, the fact he was keen to work in an emergency department again and the fact that he really needed the money at the moment. It was these thoughts that helped the lazy boyish nurse drag himself from bed at 6am and into the department on time for his first proper shift. Looking back he admitted he had been an idiot the day before, secretly Jay loved his job, he loved being a nurse but this was how it had always been partying, random girls, work coming second, Jay didn't know much else. No matter how many times his Nan called him irresponsible, how many senior nurses considered him trouble, no matter how many jobs he ducked in and out of by the skin of his teeth before he got sacked for one thing or another he never seemed to learn. Being an easy going fun guy was just part of his image, the front he placed up to the world and at times also to himself.

"Ah Jay!"

A slightly more friendly voice than Tess's echoed through reception snapping Jay from his thoughts, he turned to see Charlie, the other senior nurse who had interviewed him alongside the strict Tess.

"On time." He pointed proudly to the clock and Charlie chuckled

"Indeed and Tess was ready to fire you on the spot, shows what little faith she has!" Charlie smiled

"Nah Gramps I am actually looking forwards to this…" Jay admitted trying to hide the hint of nerves in his voice.

"You might be a little… irresponsible…" He chuckled "But you remind me of me when I was youngers! I have a feeling that there is more to you and I know you will prove me right… Eventually..."

Jay smiled slightly. It was weird for someone to place faith in him. His own Nan had been shocked he had even made it through his exams let alone qualified as a nurse.

"Right then if you're going to start work I better show you around."

Jay couldn't wait to get stuck in as Charlie guided him around cubicles, resus and eventually the staffroom. Something about the work in an emergency department gave it that extra buzz of excitement in Jay's eyes, plus there were an awful lot of rather hot looking patients…

"Right I'm ready to get stuck in Gramps!" Jay told Charlie as they wandered through to reception. "He scanned the waiting room eying up all the patients and a smile crossing his face as he spotted one he liked the look of. "And I'll start with that one…" Jay gestured towards the rather scantily clad blonde girl.

"Oh no you do not."

Ah Tess. Jay fell back to earth with a bump as he remembered life at Hobly was certainly not going to be a walk in the park.

"Hello again Ma'am." Jay smirked slightly as he turned to see Tess putting on his cheeky front once more.

"Don't you Ma'am me." She hissed "I'd like you in cubicles. There is an infected burn waiting to welcome you to the department."

"Ok…" Jay raised an eyebrow, Tess wasn't about to make his life easy, or fun for that matter. "Cubicle number…?" he asked

"Two" Tess responded briskly "You are really going to have to work hard to prove yourself after the stunt you pulled yesterday."

"Don't I know it..." Jay muttered under his breath

"What did you say?" She asked Jay could almost see the smoke pouring from her ears

"I'll get right to it!" Jay said quickly "Cubicle two is that way right?" he gestured towards the door to cubicles

Tess nodded and Jay headed off to find his first patient feeling slightly annoyed that he had missed out on the chance of treating some of Holby's more pleasant looking young ladies.

"Mr…." Jay pulled the curtain open on his third patient of the day as he checked the notes in his hand. He's only been here an hour but he had tried to get stuck in best he could he quite liked being back in an emergency department, he enjoyed the hustle and bustle.

"What are you doing here?"

He looked up from the notes and was greeted by the no-so-cheerful face of Doctor Winters, her dark hair was pulled back into a night knot and she displayed an air of professionalism alongside the bitterness in her voice. Her piercing blue eyes cut through him like ice making a shiver run down his spine.

"Working?" He raised the patient's notes and an eyebrow at the same time

"Didn't they fire you?" she stepped forwards ready to challenge him

"Charming." Jay said slightly bemused by her frosty reception as he closed the curtain "No such luck I am afraid… it's nice to see you again too."

Ruth rolled her eyes and wrinkled her nose.

"Are you capable of inserting a line?" She asked raising an eyebrow challenging him.

"Yes Ma'am." He saluted her

"Well get on with it then." Ruth told him simply "And it is Doctor Winters." She added as an after thought

"How could I forget with a frosty attitude like that?" Jay retorted

"Just get on with it." She almost snarled shooting him the dirtiest look he thought he had ever received as she set about checking the patient over once more.

"Why on earth did you employ such a… a… waste of space!" Ruth confronted Tess and Charlie at reception after her encounter with Jay. Ok he had done the job right but his cocky attitude did not please Ruth at all.

"I'm beginning to ask myself the same question." Tess turned to Charlie who shrugged slightly

"He has potential…" Charlie defended Jay

"Oh he has potential right. Potential to be a liability!" Ruth rolled her eyes

"Did he put a patient at risk?" Charlie asked raising an eyebrow

"Well no…" Ruth blushed slightly "But we don't need someone with an attitude like that around here!"

"He's fun…"

"He keeps joking around, It's not professional! He didn't even turn up to his first shift on time and not just late by five minutes by hours!" Ruth pointed out "he's smarmy, he cocky, he's rude…"

"He's right behind you." Jay's voiced echoed over Ruth's shoulder

Ruth spun round like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

"It's not personal…"

"Sounded like it to me." Jay said bluntly "I did a good job with all my patients today." He pointed out

"You're still the least professional nurse to ever walk through those doors." Ruth couldn't help herself from blurting out the words and felt her chest drop as she saw the look of hurt in Jay's eyes.

Jay shrugged slightly

"Now there's no need for that…" Charlie started

"Well it's true." Ruth said simply turning on her heel and walking away

"I don't know why I am even trying." Jay said simply raising his hands in defeat

"Don't listen to Ruth, she likes everything done by the book…" Charlie started

"Though the book is the best way to get everything done…" Tess pointed out but Charlie raised a hand and stopped her mid-sentence

"By the book isn't the only way and I am impressed so far…" Charlie began looking at Tess who reluctantly nodded in agreement "Keep it up."

Jay nodded

"Next patient?" he asked

Tess handed him the notes and he walked away without another word.

"Let's not pretend that Ruth isn't right..." Tess started

"Well with Doctors like her we need someone to lighten the mood." Charlie pointed out

"I still don't agree…" Tess sighed

"I know he will prove me right eventually." Charlie said confidently "He reminds me of me when I was young and I turned out all right didn't I?"

"yes you did but how long is eventually Charlie? We need a nurse not a liability!" Tess shook her head and headed towards resus.

Charlie sighed. Jay's management of his work load certainly proved he could cope but his attitude was already creating chaos. He doubted his choice for a moment but then shook his head. Jay would prove him right. He just knew it.


	3. Admiration

**Save Me **

**Chapter 3 – Admiration **

It was a typical morning before work. Ruth launched herself out of bed (the best way to wake herself up) and immediately headed through to the bathroom of the semi-detached house belonging to her old colleague Maggie, which she shared with fellow F2 Toby, to begin getting ready for work. It never took her very long to get ready even now she was working under Mr Jordan and she had been making an effort to impress since he had arrived a few weeks ago. The older man was everything she dreamed of being, a top notch surgeon, a cardiologist no less, popular, feared but also adored.

One day she'd be admired like him. She promised herself as she stepped out the shower. Once her long brown hair was dry Ruth curled her it neatly before throwing on a pretty top and jeans, Yes she wanted to look good but she didn't want to look as if she was trying too hard either. Checking her watch she cursed slightly, she needed to get a move on. Picking up her bag she dashed out the front door and headed down her favourite detour to the bus stop, a small side street containing a little coffee shop. She emerged from the shop five minutes later clasping a coffee cup, when work was involved Ruth always followed the same routine, heading to this particular coffee shop before she boarded the bus to Holby city hospital.

The journey was a short one and before she knew it she was jumping off the bus, downing the last of her coffee and putting it in the bin at the bus stop before walking quickly towards the department, she headed straight through to the staffroom to change into her scrubs. She came face to face with a yawning Toby

"Long shift?" She commented as she put her bag in her locker and pulled out her neatly washed and ironed scrubs

"Yeah" Toby yawned again

"If you could refrain from falling asleep on the sofa I'd appreciate it." Ruth said bluntly

"I was tired." Toby pulled a face

"Good morning Doctors!"

Ruth pulled a face as Jay saluted them from the door way with a plastic skeleton on his back. Toby burst out laughing but she simply glared at him as he tossed his curly hair.

"He's an idiot." Ruth commented as Jay vanished and Toby rolled his eyes

"He's funny!" Toby defended Jay

"Trust you to like him, You wouldn't know professional if it bit you on the nose!" Ruth responded sharply

"You just don't like him because he is a good laugh!"

"No I hate him because he is constantly acting like an irresponsible idiot!" Ruth pointed out

"You know you have to actually care about someone to hate them. The opposite to love isn't hate it is indifference!" Toby sight with a small smirk

Ruth blushed slightly.

"Oh screw off Toby!" Ruth slammed her locker shut "Jay is the most irresponsible nurse I have ever met! And some of us have work to be getting on with so I'll see you at home." She added bluntly before storming off to the ladies toilets to get changed unwilling to remain in the same room as her annoying colleague any longer.

It was a regular day in the emergency department hectic and challenging just how Ruth liked it to be. The shift was coming to a close, finishing off treating her fifteenth patient Ruth placed their notes on the pile next to Noel's computer and glanced over at Mr Jordan who was discussing a patient with Adam. She couldn't help it sometimes she found herself watching his every move like some obsessive fan girl, maybe because he was like a father figure that she had never really had or maybe it was just that he was an eminent surgeon and surgery was where she wanted to be. Whatever it was she had been rather star struck since he arrived. She didn't fancy him as such, well ok she did find him a little handsome but really it was more that she admired him, he was everything she wanted to be and she hoped that impressing him and to befriending him might help her career.

Snapping from her thoughts as the door burst open she turned to see Dixie and Jeff pushing a patient in.

"Doctor Winters!" Nick gestured that she should follow and she eagerly followed the trolley into resus.

They set about making the patient comfortable, they had soon established what injuries the patient, a victim of a car crash, had obtained an idea of what needed to be done. Ruth correctly identified a pneumothorax and quickly had the patient comfortable and stable.

"Good work Doctor Winters!" Nick complimented Ruth as he pulled off his gloves and threw them in the rubbish after they had decided the patient was ready to move up to a ward.

"Thanks." Ruth blushed "Is there anything you need doing? Filing?" Ruth added eagerly "I know the shift is over but I don't mind doing a bit extra work…" she suggested keen to get further in to Nick's good books

"Working too hard is not good for you Doctor Winters." Nick pointed out simply "Like I said last week you really should go out and let your hair down a bit, you will learn more about your colleagues over a pint than a patient!"

"Yes Mr Jordan." Ruth sighed

"Give them a chance." Nick winked before turning and walking away leaving Ruth feeling a little disappointed.

As Nick vanished Ruth heard a whistling behind her. Spinning on the spot she spotted Jay watching from across reception.

"Someone's got a crush." He laughed

"Oh shut up!" Ruth replied irritably her cheeks flushing red as she stormed away in the direction of the staffroom.

She threw her stethoscope in her locked and sighed glancing over her shoulder at the rest of the gang who were already beginning to congregate by reception ready to go to the pub. Would it hurt to join in? Would Nick be right? Would it impress him if she went out with them? Would it help her career?

Picking up her jeans and t-shirt she made the snap decision to go to the pub. It wouldn't hurt would it?


	4. Family Ties

**Save Me**

**Chapter 4 – Family Ties **

Ruth felt distinctly uncomfortable as she settled herself in the booth with the rest of the gang. This was so not her idea of fun. She looked around nervously as Adam announced it was his round causing a chorus of cheers from her work mates. As he took their orders she asked she wanted a coke ignoring the comment from Jeff about letting her hair down and lent back in her seat observing the conversation of her colleagues.

Jeff and Dixie were bickering like a married couple, Tess, Big Mac and Jess were chatting amicably with Charlie whilst Kelsey and Zoe was laughing at something that Jay had just said. Her bright blue eyes met the chocolate brown eyes of the curly haired nurse for a second and she immediately looked over at the bar and focused on Adam who was picking up a tray containing all their drinks.

As he returned everyone's attention fell on the friendly doctor handing out drinks. Ruth accepted her coke and sipped on it watching as he squeezed into his seat between Jess and Tess.

How did this all come so naturally to them all? She felt totally uncomfortable sat here amongst her colleagues in a non-professional setting, more so as that setting was the pub, a place she had never enjoyed visiting.

As a child her father would often spend his evenings down the pub near the estate, the majority of the time he would stagger in the house waking everyone inside at one or two in the morning. Ruth would often wake to his heavy footsteps or loud yells or sometimes a bang as he threw her mother across the small apartment. She had always believed the pub to be a bad place from as long as she could remember because her father always came back in such a state. Her early visits to the pub her dad practically lived in did nothing to dispel her opinion of pubs. Depending on how her mother was feeling Ruth would sometimes find herself and her brother being dragged by her mother down to the pub, either to yell at her father because he hadn't been home in days or for a family night out. Even those so called family nights out did nothing to make the place better in her eyes because she couldn't remember a single night in the pub that hadn't ended in an argument.

Ruth's eyes darted around the pub eyeing up its occupants. This particular pub did seem to attract a different cliental than the one on the edge of the estate but there were still a few shady looking old men leaning over their pints in much the same way as her father used too.

Her attention turned back to the group as Charlie asked her opinion on something obviously trying to draw her in to the group conversation. She shrugged a little and politely agreed her eyes now flicking around the group once more as the conversation continued. She focused on Jay once more, how did someone who had barely been working in the department a week already fit in with the group when she had been working there for over a year?

Ruth sighed slightly and took a long gulp of her drink. This was going to be a long night.

An hour and a half later Ruth decided that she had been polite long enough. To be fair she had begun to relax a little as the night went on and had even been able to join in the conversation a little, it didn't make the whole situation feel less awkward though.

"I'm going to head off." She announced quietly

"So soon?" Adam smiled

"There's a few journals I want to check out before bed…" She lied

"If we only had the inclination to study as much as you!" Adam joked slightly "It was nice of you to join us." He added with a small sincere smile

Ruth blushed at the compliment as a couple of the others agreed with Adam's statement whilst she stood up.

She left the pub to a chorus of 'see you tomorrow' from her colleagues. She felt a little smile creep across her face .It had been uncomfortable but Nick had been right coming out for a drink hadn't hurt and she had learnt more about her colleagues than she did over a patient, she actually felt like she might be part of a team not just a junior doctor trying her hardest to get into the career she had chosen.

She wandered away from the pub. Although this wasn't the pub her father had always drunk at she still had to walk past the edge of the old estate in order to get back to Maggie's as she walked past the imposing buildings she couldn't help but look up transfixed counting the windows to work out which was the flat from her childhood that still sometimes haunted her nightmares. It made her feel even more uncomfortable as she passed the pub from her memories. The whole place gave her the creeps she decided as the haunting memories of her childhood flashed before her eyes.

Quickening her pace slightly Ruth decided to just get out of their as fast as she could but as she neared the edge of the estate and began to catch her breath she froze as she spotted a figure directly ahead of her stumbling down the pathway towards the pub a few feet back. An awfully familiar figure. She tried to convince her feet to move but they seem to have become glued to the spot as the grey hair became clearer and clearer. She held her breath hoping he wouldn't recognise her, that he'd just walk past her without a second glance but her luck wasn't in. He paused, swaying slightly on the spot. Ruth could smell the stench of stale beer a mile off.

"Ruthie?" She shuddered at the old nickname

"Dad." She greeted him coldly trying to not show her fear as he stepped closer despite the fact her heart was pounding in her chest.

"Right I'm going to love you all and leave you." Jay announced as he watched Tess and Big Mac leaving, after Ruth had gone a few of the others had begun to call it a night as he watched the door close behind Tess and Big Mac Jay made the snap decision to head on to a club.

"Better offer?" Zoe laughed as Jay pulled on his coat and checked his phone.

"Time for a bit more excitement, there's a pint in a club with my name on it!" He winked

"And some poor girl's bed…" Kelsey laughed and Jay felt his cheeks flush slightly. Did his new colleagues already have him pegged as such a womaniser?

"Sorry Kelsey got no plans of sharing your bed tonight!" He retorted cheekily waving off her previous remark "Later guys."

There was a chorus of goodbyes as he made his way towards the exit of the pub. He loved hanging out with the gang already, they were such a good bunch but he was craving a pint in somewhere a bit louder and possibly a dance or two with some decent looking ladies.

He paused as his path split two ways, the short cut to town towards the edge of the estate or the long way to town through the suburbs, he usually avoided the estate areas after dark, his Nan had always said they were unsafe and full of unsavoury characters. He didn't; fancy getting mugged just for walking past a few buildings. He looked up at the darkening sky, the sun had only just begun to set and the long route was not feeling at all enticing. He made the snap decision and turned towards the estate deciding to take his chances.

"What you doing round 'ere?" he said in a semi threatening tone "Thought the estate wasn't good enough for you these days!"

"I'm just walking home." Ruth said truthfully "I don't want any trouble… I'm just going to…"

"Going to what?" He stepped closer, Ruth could smell the beer on his breath and she instantly shut her eyes expecting him to grab her or strike her. When he didn't she opened one eye warily to see him sneering unpleasantly.

"Go home…" Ruth tried to suggest

"Not even got five minutes for a conversation with your dad?" He responded instantly "Always were a cold fish weren't you! Can't even look me in the eyes can you?" He grabbed her face and pushed her chin up to try and force her to look in his eyes grey met blue and Ruth flinched. "Stuck up brat. Don't know where you got it from, Jon might be in prison but at least he doesn't pretend is family doesn't exist!"

He let go and Ruth could see the drunken anger in his eyes. She knew what was coming next before the fist even met with her stomach, before a familiar dull pain spread through her body.

Jay glanced around himself wearily as he wandered, hands in pockets, towards the estate. He looked up at the towering flats, glad he had never had to spend much time around this area of Holby. He felt sorry for a moment the paramedics who seemed to always be being dragged over here for emergency calls, real or fake.

He quickened his pace and kept his head down as he passed a grubby looking pub. Suddenly his head flew up as he spotted movement ahead. Two people fighting. He stepped closer warily neither seem to have noticed his presence, at first he could only see shadows and figured it was two men but as he drew closer he realised it was an older man towering over the figure of a girl.

Jay didn't want to get caught up in something but he couldn't just stand by and watch some girl get attacked by an older man. He took a deep breath.

"Leave her alone." He stepped up grabbing the man's arm firmly with his hand he looked into the cold grey eyes of the girl's attacker

"And you are?" he immediately challenged Jay

"I'll call the police." Jay said bravely

"She's not worth it anyway." He hissed his breath stank of beer and his eyes were blood shot. Jay fixed him with a glare. "Later Ruthie." As the man staggered off towards the pub Jay looked down his heart leaping slightly as he heard the name 'Ruthie', Ruth? He looked down to see the familiar face of Ruth staring up at him a little blood trickling from the edge of her mouth.

"Ruth?"

She stood up ignoring his questioning tone as he said her name

"You ok?"

"Just fine." She managed to spit out shooting him one of her familiar glares

"What on earth was that?" Jay asked as he looked between the retreating back of the older gentleman and his colleague

"That?" Ruth said straightening her coat slightly and looking up into his eyes. "That was my family." She replied bluntly before hurrying off as fast as she could towards her flat fighting back tears leaving Jay stood watching her go rooted to the spot unsure what he should do.


	5. Bruises

**Save Me **

**Chapter 5 - Bruises **

Ruth lent on the sink and let her eyes scan up to her reflection in the mirror on the wall above the sink, her eyes focused on the purple bruising across her right cheek and around her right eye. She sighed. It was obvious that she had been attacked or in some sort of fight. Raising a hand she gentle ran her fingers across the bruising and winced slightly. It was superficial but that was all the more annoying, everyone at work would be able to see. It was bad enough Jay had witnessed her being attacked, she was already going to get the pathetic sympathetic pitiful looks from him she didn't need them from the rest of the staff or the 101 questions that would come along with them spotting the bruising.

She knew what she had to do. She had done it many times before, pulling out her make up bag she set to work expertly applying concealer until the bruising was hardly noticeable, she looked back into the mirror and directly into her own cold blue eyes. It had been so long since she had stepped back into her old life she had managed to persuade herself that it didn't exist but who was she kidding? Whatever she did and wherever she went she was still Ruth Winters, scrawny little kid from the estate, motherless, punch bag for her drunken father and idiot brother. She felt the tears prickling at her eyes and scaled herself for being so week, she had good things going for her too, she was a good doctor and although her surgery dreams were escaping her she still had a good career away from the remnants of her family ahead of her.

Jay tapped the end of the pen he was holding on the reception desk in front of him. It was the day after he had stepped in to stop Ruth being attacked and his mind was definitely not on his work instead it was firmly fixed on Ruth, frosty, bad tempered, unfriendly, Ruth.

His eyes suddenly came into contact with the piercing blue eyes of Ruth as she approaching him in a business-like manner.

"Can you suture Mrs Jones in cubicle three please."

It was more of a statement than a question. Ruth dropped the patient notes on the reception desk in front of Jay and turned on her heel to make a quick exit. Jay couldn't decide if she was just being her usual frosty self or was avoiding him because of the night before. Close up he could see a faint purple bruising across the right side of her face, something he wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't been looking thanks to the expertly applied make up covering her face. He had to say something.

"Are you alright?" He blurted out a hint of worry in his voice

Ruth stopped in her tracks.

"You know after last night…" He added a hint of nerves in his usually confident voice

Ruth turned on her heel and took a few steps back towards him

"Just because you know one thing about me does not mean we are friends." She hissed under her breath "Or that I need your concern, I am fine on my own I do not need you interfering in my life so forget you saw anything." She added before turning on her heel and storming off leaving a shell shocked Jay standing in her wake.


End file.
